Tuesday, December 30, 2008

A Puppy for Christmas

I have had five important dogs in my life but I've never gotten a puppy for Christmas, one of my longest-standing wishes. This year, my wish came true, or at least pretty close. It wasn't quite Christmas and she's not a puppy any more, but you get the idea. Two days after Christmas, we were approved for adoption and Cora was delivered to our house.

I heard about Smiley Dog Rescue from my friend the Evil Empress who has fostered dogs for them and even adopted one of her fosterees, the delightfully goofy Dell. Smiley Dog is a good organization, staffed with caring volunteers who take animals out of kill shelters and keep them until the right home comes along.

I had seen Cora's picture three months before on the Smiley Dog Rescue web site (www.smileydogrescue.org, if you are looking for a dog to love), but two emergency trips to Connecticut and a vacation to Hawaii intervened, so I wasn't at all sure she'd end up with us. I filled out the adoption application and hoped for the best, keeping in touch with Smiley Dog all that time, letting them know what was happening and, while they didn't make any promises, they kindly kept her a little longer.

Initially, I thought I'd probably change her name, as Cora seemed like an old lady who smells of lavender but now that she's been with us for less than a day, I think we'll keep it. She is very ladylike in the house, very gentle when she takes food from your hand, quiet (except when the leash appears and there's a chance of a walk - then, she becomes a whirling dervish of delighted excitability) and sweet-natured. At the dog park, she's all Border Collie (although there are clearly some other genes in there, too), running like the wind, herding the other dogs and playing boisterously, but at home she's refined, calm and peaceful, as if she had crocheted doilies on her end tables.

Cora. Corazon. Perfect.


Labels: ,

13 Comments:

Blogger Kailyn said...

What a lovely addition to your family.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger Nancy Ewart said...

Oh wow! Delightful. Now, never mention heart, crusty and yours in the same sentence again!

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger Ms Brown Mouse said...

She's beautiful, those eyebrows. You are so very lucky, give her a tummy rub from me.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger cookiecrumb said...

I'm so impressed! I'm happy for you. How delightful that you got a NICE dog. (My dog is very nice, but he prefers Cranky to me, and it breaks my heart a little. But he will snuggle with me in bed if I'm the only one there.)
Bean Sprout can't wait to meet her.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger Deetsa said...

Cora looks lovely. She looks very lady-like indeed.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger Michelle said...

I'm thrilled for you! And I love her name because it does sound like it fits her personality exactly! Getting my dog made a huge difference in my life at a very hard time - maybe Cora will help heal your heart too! Congratulations!

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

She looks like my dog Grace. If she is anything like Grace she will make an excellent addition to your household.

A

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm so delighted that you ended up with Cora, and can't wait to meet her in person!

Tuesday, December 30, 2008  
Blogger Zoomie said...

Kailyn, she's a peach!

Nancy, okay, okay, I hear you! :-)

Morgan - yes, I love the eyebrows, too. She says thanks for the tummy rub!

Cookiecrumb, I think Cora is tending toward male adoration, too. My Beloved is very flattered.

Nerissa, she is, except when excited with other dogs around.

Michelle, she is very loving and that helps.

Anonymous, Grace would have been another good name for this girl! She's a lovely "mover."

Evlmprs, I'll meet you at Point Isabel for a latte once I'm confident that Cora will stick with me! :-)

Wednesday, December 31, 2008  
Blogger Katie Zeller said...

Awwwww!
As you might have noticed, I'm a wee bit partial to dogs and she looks super sweet. Cora is perfect!

Thursday, January 01, 2009  
Blogger Zoomie said...

KatieZ, she's a peach - really a lovely good dog (aren't they all?) and we are tickled pink to have her!

Thursday, January 01, 2009  
Blogger Tea said...

Actually, the name Cora is coming back into vogue--three friends of mine have named their babies Cora in the past year!

I'm partial to it b/c it was my great-grandmother's name:-)

She looks like a sweetheart--I'm so glad you found each other.

Also, did you know you were quoted in Sunset magazine? Dec 2008 issue--saw it yesterday and gave a little whoop for you!

Also--Mia is so much bigger, but no less adorable and sweet from the sound of it. How lovely. Here's to heart melting:-)

HNY to you!

Tuesday, January 06, 2009  
Blogger Zoomie said...

Tea, what fun to get a comment from you! HNY to you, too! Yes, Mia is so tall now - must get that from her Dad - and talking semi-intelligibly, too! I didn't know about the Sunset thing - I'll have to check my copy! Any hints as to where to find it?

Wednesday, January 07, 2009  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home